Creamy Lemon Feta Pasta – A Bright, Silky, Mediterranean-Inspired Dinner Ready in 20 Minutes

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If you love pasta dishes that feel light, bright, creamy, and comforting all at once, Creamy Lemon Feta Pasta is about to become your new weeknight favorite. This dish is the perfect balance of tangy lemon, salty feta, aromatic garlic, and velvety sauce that coats every strand of pasta beautifully. It’s simple, fast, flavorful, and deeply satisfying in a way that feels both indulgent and refreshing.

This recipe combines classic Mediterranean flavors — feta, olive oil, lemon, herbs — and turns them into a luscious sauce that takes just minutes to make. Unlike heavy cream-based alfredo sauces, this one relies on the natural creaminess of melted feta combined with pasta water, lemon juice, and a touch of cream to create a silky, restaurant-quality texture.

Whether you’re cooking for yourself, your family, or hosting friends, this dish creates a show-stopping pasta with minimal effort. It’s also a versatile base — you can add veggies, chicken, shrimp, chickpeas, spinach, roasted tomatoes, or keep it perfectly simple.

Below you’ll find the full ingredients, step-by-step instructions, helpful tips, variations, serving suggestions, and your complete JSON recipe card formatted exactly to your specifications.

Why You’ll Love This Pasta

✓ Ready in 20 minutes
Perfect for busy nights.

✓ Creamy without being heavy
A bright and fresh pasta you won’t feel weighed down by.

✓ Budget-friendly ingredients
Feta + pasta + lemon = perfection.

✓ Versatile
Add protein or veggies easily.

✓ Elegant enough for guests
It looks and tastes gourmet.

Ingredients

For the Pasta

  • 12 oz pasta (linguine, spaghetti, or short pasta like penne)
  • 1 cup reserved pasta water

For the Creamy Lemon Feta Sauce

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • ½ cup heavy cream (or half & half)
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • ¼ tsp salt (adjust to taste)
  • ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

Finishing Touches

  • Fresh basil or parsley, chopped
  • Extra lemon zest
  • Extra feta for topping

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta

Boil pasta in salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining.

2. Start the sauce

In a skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add minced garlic and cook 1 minute until fragrant.

3. Melt the feta

Add feta, cream, lemon juice, lemon zest, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Stir until feta softens and forms a creamy sauce.

4. Adjust texture

Add ½–1 cup pasta water gradually until sauce becomes silky and smooth.

5. Toss pasta

Add cooked pasta to the skillet and toss until fully coated with the lemon-feta sauce.

6. Finish and garnish

Top with extra feta, lemon zest, and fresh herbs. Serve warm.

Creamy Lemon Feta Pasta

A bright, silky, Mediterranean-inspired pasta coated in a creamy lemon-feta sauce made with fresh garlic, herbs, and olive oil.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Dinner, Main Dish
Cuisine: Italian, Mediterranean
Calories: 420

Ingredients
  

Pasta
  • 12 oz pasta any shape
  • 1 cup pasta water reserved
Creamy Lemon Feta Sauce
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 cup feta cheese crumbled
  • 0.5 cup heavy cream
  • 1 lemon zested and juiced
  • 0.5 tsp black pepper
  • 0.25 tsp salt
  • 0.5 tsp crushed red pepper flakes optional
Finishing Touches
  • fresh basil chopped
  • extra feta for topping

Equipment

  • Large pot
  • Skillet
  • Wooden spoon
  • Zester

Method
 

  1. Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente; reserve pasta water.
  2. Heat olive oil in a skillet and sauté garlic for 1 minute.
  3. Add feta, cream, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Stir until creamy.
  4. Add pasta water gradually until sauce becomes silky.
  5. Add pasta and toss until coated.
  6. Garnish with basil, extra feta, and lemon zest. Serve warm.

Notes

Use block feta for the smoothest sauce. Add lemon slowly to adjust tartness.

Expert Tips

Use high-quality feta
Block feta melts better and has richer flavor than pre-crumbled.

Don’t skip pasta water
It thickens, emulsifies, and improves the sauce texture dramatically.

Add lemon slowly
Some feta is saltier or tangier; adjust to taste.

Serve immediately
This pasta tastes best fresh while the sauce is ultra-creamy.

Variations

Add Protein

  • grilled chicken
  • shrimp
  • salmon
  • crispy chickpeas

Add Veggies

  • spinach
  • sun-dried tomatoes
  • cherry tomatoes
  • roasted zucchini
  • asparagus

Make It Lighter
Use half-and-half or Greek yogurt (added off heat).

Make It Spicy
Increase red pepper flakes or add chili crisp.

Serving Suggestions

Pair this pasta with:

  • garlic bread
  • simple green salad
  • roasted vegetables
  • grilled chicken or shrimp
  • lemony white wine

Storage & Reheating

Store:
Up to 3 days in an airtight container.

Reheat:
Add a splash of water or cream and warm gently.

Note:
Sauce will thicken when cold due to feta — reheating fixes it.

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